Leaving San Jose and Cartago in the Central Valley behind and by following the Interamericana Highway you cross one of Costa Rica’s most impressive mountain ranges, the Cerro de La Muerte. Coming down in the Valley of the General River, which runs down westward from the slopes of the Talamanca mountains to the Pacific Ocean, the first big town on the road is San Isidro de El General. San Isidro de El General got its official name in 1910. Founded as Quebradas de Los Chanchos (Ravines of the Pigs), the name changed to Urena, before the name it has nowadays became official by decreed in 1954. The town of San Isidro del General, part of the Province of San Jose, is the center of a valley that prospers thanks to the agricultural activities and has a population of more than 140,000 inhabitants. With an average temperature of 24 degrees centigrade the conditions are perfect for growing coffee and on the mountain slopes at an altitude between 400 and 1,200 meters you can see many plantations, producing coffee that is marketed under the name Café Buena Vista. The people of San Isidro de El General used to make the journey to the Central Valley by foot and had to cross the rugged mountain ranges of the Cerro de La Muerte; the mountain of death. The trails could be slippery because of the rain and fog often reduced the visibility so much that a lot of people did not survive the trip, which could take up more than 4 days. Now the 120 kilometer long trip from San Jose to San Isidro de El General takes no more than 4 hours and the route offers impressive views of the mountains. San Isidro de El General is the perfect place to make a stop, before continuing the journey to Dominical in the Province of Puntarenas, only 30 kilometers ahead on the Pacific Coast. Most of the traffic will continue its way to Canoas on the border with Panama. In February San Isidro de El General is filled with people from all over the valley to attend the yearly agricultural festival. Highlights are the cattle show and the fair, where you can get a good taste of the authentic Costa Rican farming life and of course of the typical food, made of fresh ingredients grown in the region. From San Isidro, following the Interamericana Highway south, the first city in the Province of Puntarenas is Buenas Aires, where the Indian Reserve of the Burucas del Rey Curre can be visited.